The subject matter disclosed herein relates to validating sensor placement in the context of a monitoring system.
Various types of sensors are often used in various industrial and commercial contexts to measure and monitor a process or environment of interest, such as the environment (e.g., temperature, pressure, pH) in which a controlled chemical reaction is occurring, the condition or status of equipment used in utility contexts (e.g., power generation, water treatment, and so forth), the environment within an engine or generator present in a vehicle (e.g., an airplane, boat, locomotive, bus, or automobile), and so forth.
In these contexts, the sensor typically conveys the data acquired pertaining to the monitored parameters of interest, but does not or cannot convey information that validates location and/or performance of the sensor or other data validating the sensor. By way of example, a temperature sensor may convey temperature data, but it must typically be assumed that the sensor is in the proper location, that the sensor is in proper working order, and/or that the sensor has not been tampered with or replaced with an improper or unsuitable part.
Thus, reliance on the sensor may be based in part on assumptions that may or may not be warranted and that may prove problematic if incorrect.